New dining experiences from Orient-Express
7th September 2011 – From traditional Mexican cuisine at Maroma Resort and Spa, to fine dining in Thailand and a gastronomic floating banquet in Bali, Orient-Express is delighted to announce the launch of a series of new gourmet options. Each has been carefully developed to reflect the local destination and to offer the highest in standards, ensuring an authentic and memorable dining experience.La Cantina
Maroma Resort and Spa, Riviera Maya, Mexico
Offering a genuine taste of Mexico, La Cantina is the newest culinary addition to Maroma Resort and Spa. Serving homebrewed beers, a range of tequilas and delicious Botanas (home-style dishes customarily served with drinks); guests are able to indulge in a traditional Mexican extravaganza. An integral part of the Mexican culture, the country’s first Cantina was established in 1805 as a place for men to gather and discuss business and current affairs. Since then Cantinas have grown into places where friends and couples can meet to play games and exchange tales. La Cantina at Maroma Resort and Spa has stayed true to this time-honoured style of socialising.
Those dining at La Cantina are encouraged to discover Mexican culture. When devising the concept, Maroma’s F&B Manager and Executive Chef visited some the most established La Cantinas in Mexico City to ensure the restaurant is as authentic as possible. The main table at Maroma’s La Cantina, combines several decorative elements including hand-painted wooden toys, traditional kitchen utensils and regional crafts for people to interact with. Local games are also played, including El Balero, a customary wooden toy that is caught in the air and specialised books are available for guests to read.
Highlights from the menu include: Fideo seco (dry noodles with chipotle, avocado and fresh cheese to be enjoyed with tortillas), taquitos de pollo (crispy chicken tacos with avocado sauce) and cordero rostizado (roasted suckling lamb ‘Monterrey Style’). Twice a week guests are invited to Noches de Cantina where these sumptuous dishes are served accompanied by atmospheric Mexican music.
Nightly rates at Maroma Resort and Spa start from 651$USD (approx £399) in a Garden View Room, including breakfast and all taxes. To book visit www.maromahotel.com or call the Orient-Express reservations team on 0845 077 2222
Lanterns
Napasai, Koh Samui, Thailand
Already a popular dining option, Lanterns, the chic fine dining restaurant at Napasai, is set overlooking Napasai’s freeform candlelit infinity pool and is a deeply romantic venue. Featuring a warm and welcoming atmosphere, guests are able to dine alfresco under the moonlit sky.
Executive Chef, Gilles Galli, has carefully crafted a menu that combines contemporary cuisine with his Mediterranean roots and the flavours and spices of Thailand. All ingredients are sourced locally, seasonal and fresh. From a starter of sea scallops skewer with palm heart salad and sesame seeds crispy gambas to main courses of Slipper lobster with slivers of truffles, seaweed tagliatelle pasta with yellow bell pepper cream and young carrots tempura, Lanterns offers a mouth watering menu designed to tantalize the taste buds.
Nightly rates at Napasai start from THB 10,801 (approx £222) in a Seaview Hill Villa, including breakfast and all taxes. To book visit www.napasai.com or call the Orient-Express reservations team on 0845 077 2222
A Private Floating Supper At Sunset
Ubud Hanging Gardens, Bali, Indonesia
Perched high on verdant cliffs and facing an ancient temple, the villas at Ubud Hanging Gardens feature beautiful infinity pools, offering spectacular views over the surrounding scenery. Making full use of this stunning setting, guests can now indulge in the ultimate floating banquet served in the privacy of their very own villa. A special ‘east meets west’ menu has been devised, including sea scallops, crab meat rolls, beef teriyaki with mushrooms and mangosteen with prawn. These delicacies are served onboard a traditional Balinese boat which guests can enjoy while relaxing in their infinity pool or on their terrace and watching the sun go down. The Sunset Floating Temptation menu costs 150 $USD (approx £92) per boat and is available for two people from 18.00.
Nightly rates at Ubud Hanging Gardens start from 459 $USD (approx £283) in a Riverside Deluxe Pool Villa, including breakfast and all taxes. To book visit www.ubudhanginggardens.com or call the Orient-Express reservations team on 0845 077 2222
- Ends –
Orient-Express, (NYSE: OEH, www.orient-express.com) the name behind an elite collection of travel experiences, first came into being in 1883 as one of the world’s most exciting and indulgent train journeys. Today that evocative name also embraces hotels, cruises and other luxury rail adventures in 24 countries, across five continents. The Company has offered exceptional luxury travel experiences since 1976, when it first purchased Hotel Cipriani in Venice and then shortly afterwards, recreated the celebrated Venice Simplon-Orient-Express, linking London, Paris and Venice, along with other European cities. Today, the company owns or part-owns and manages 49 businesses, 40 of which are highly acclaimed hotels, each unique in style, from the Mount Nelson in Cape Town and Rio’s Copacabana Palace, to the Grand Hotel Europe in St. Petersburg and Maroma Resort & Spa on Mexico’s Riviera Maya. There are six luxury tourist trains, two river cruise operations and ‘21’, one of New York’s most iconic restaurants.
For further information, please contact Sara Mirza or Emily Wilson at Orient-Express on 020 7921 4069 or sara.mirza@orient-express.com, emily.wilson@orient-express.com
